2017-18 Women's Golf Season Recap
May 30, 2018 | Women's Golf
SEASON RECAP
• Carolina was the No. 6 seed in the NCAA San Francisco Regional and finished 9th, two shots out of the advancing six teams. The Tar Heels did not advance to the NCAA Championship for the first time in three seasons.
• The Tar Heels were selected to an NCAA regional for the 25th time in program history, for the 13th-consecutive season and for the ninth time under the direction of head coach Jan Mann.
• Carolina was the No. 3 seed in the ACC Championship and finished tied for 8th at the Grandover East Course in Greensboro, N.C.
• Jan Mann wrapped up her ninth year as head coach, and Aimee Neff completed her first year as associate head coach. Neff joined the program after one year as an assistant at Vanderbilt and three years at Michigan State.
• UNC finished in the top five in five of 11 events this year, including the last three tournaments of the regular season. That is the highest total since 2011-12.
• The Tar Heels have finished in the top seven in seven of 11 tournaments.
• Carolina won one tournament this season - the Briar's Creek Invitational (March 19-20). The win was the 45th in program history. The Tar Heels set a new Briar's Creek tournament record for lowest tournament total (848), and the score is the second-lowest in UNC history.Â
• Kelly Whaley shot 12-under-par 204 to win Briar's Creek and break her own school records for 54-hole tournment score and score vs. par.
• The Tar Heels have shot two of the five lowest 54-hole tournament scores in school history this season – 16-under-par 848 at the Briar's Creek Invitational and 8-under-par 856 at the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational.
• Kelly Whaley, Bryana Nguyen, Ava Bergner and Brynn Walker played in the Tar Heel lineup in all 11 tournaments, and Mariana Ocano appeared in the lineup in the final 10 tournaments.
• Three different Tar Heels have finished in the top 10 of tournaments - Ava Bergner (twice), Kelly Whaley (twice) and Bryana Nguyen.
• UNC fininshed the season ranked No. 24 in the country by Golfstat and No. 31 by Golfweek.Â
RANKINGS
Golfstat: UNC (24), Kelly Whaley (85), Ava Bergner (142), Brynn Walker (162), Bryana Nguyen (217)
Golfweek: UNC (31), Whaley (73), Bergner (135), Walker (171), Nguyen (227), Ocano (365)
SINGLE-SEASON STROKE AVERAGES
• Junior Kelly Whaley finished the season with the lowest single-season stroke average in UNC history at 73.24.
• Freshman Ava Bergner finished the season with a 74.00 stroke average. She also finished the fall with the lowest fall stroke average in school history at 72.08.
• With Whaley's 73.24 and Bergner's 74.00, two Tar Heels finished with single season stroke averages of 74.00 and below for the first time since 2012-13 and for the fourth time in school history.
PLAYER NOTES – STARTERS
BRYANA NGUYEN (Senior, Columbia Md.)
Ranked No. 217 Golfstat/No. 227 Golfweek • Regional Finish – T48 (+6) • ACC Championship Finish – T37 (+12) • Started in Carolina's lineup in every event in her career except for one as a junior • Finished her career with a 75.44 stroke average and a final season stroke average of 74.79 • Had two top-five and three top-10 finishes in her career • Shot a career-low 68 four times, including twice this season • Finished fifth at the Briar's Creek Invitational at -3 • Was the low finisher for Carolina in the Battle at the Beach • Finished second at the Bryan National Collegiate as a junior, shooting the fifth-lowest tournament score to par in UNC history (-7, 209) • Had two top-11 finishes in the ACC Championships, with her highest finish coming as a junior when she finished tied for eighth • Co-president of the UNC Student-Athlete Advisory Council • Was named the 2017-18 Tar Heel Leader of Distinction on April 16 • Recieved the Jim Tatum Memorial Award at the Chancellor's Awards – given annually to the varsity athlete who has performed with distinction in his or her sport and who has contributed to the university community through constructive participation in co-curricular activities.
KELLY WHALEYÂ (Junior, Farmington, Conn.)
Ranked No. 85 Golfstat/No. 73 Golfweek • Regional Finish – T17 (E) • ACC Championship Finish – T25 (+8) • Has started for Carolina in every tournament in her career • Led the team in stroke average (73.24 – UNC record), rounds under par (8 – tied with Ava Bergner) and rounds in the 60s (4) • Has the two lowest tournament scores in school history – breaking her own record this season to win the Briar's Creek Invitational at -12, 204 • First Tar Heel ever to shoot all three rounds in the 60s for a tournament, doing so at the Briar's Creek Invitational (68-67-69) • Shot par or lower in eight out of her last 14 rounds • Had five top-15 finishes on the year, including top-five finishes in the last two tournaments of the regular season • Was the low-finishing Tar Heel in five of the seven spring tournaments.
MARIANA OCANO (Sophomore, St. Petersburg, Fla.)
No. 365 Golfweek • Regional Finish – T79 (+14) • ACC Championship Finish – T23 (+7) • Season stroke average of 75.82 • Started for the Tar Heels in all but the first tournament • Was the low-finisher for the Tar Heels at the ACC Championship (T23, +7) and the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate (T11, +6) • Tied an ACC Championship record at the Grandover Resort East Course with her 5-under 67 in round two – a career low • Shot five rounds under par this season.
BRYNN WALKER (Sophomore, St. David's, Pa.)
Ranked No. 162 Golfstat/No. 171 Golfweek • Regional Finish – T22 (+1) • ACC Championship Finish – T30 (+9) • Has started in every tournament as a Tar Heel • Season stroke average of 74.36 - third on the team • Had six rounds under par on the year • Had three top-20 finishes on the year.
AVA BERGNER (Freshman, Ketsch, Germany)
Rankings: No. 142 Golfstat/No. 135 Golfweek • Regional Finish – T33 (+3) • ACC Championship Finish – T44 (+14) • Second on the team in stroke average at 74.00 – second lowest for a freshman in UNC history • Had the lowest fall stroke average in UNC history (72.08) • Was the low finisher for Carolina in the first three tournaments of the year • Tied Kelly Whaley's UNC record for lowest round (66) in the final round of the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational to finish tied for third • Also finished the Tar Heel with the lowest score ever for a UNC player in the tournament (-10, 206) – the second-best score all time at UNC • Led the team in par rounds (7) and tied with Whaley for rounds under par (8).
PLAYER NOTES – NON-STARTERS
CLEMENTINA RODRIGUEZ (Junior, Caracas, Venezuela)
Started in the first tournament of the year – Ocean Course Invitational • Played as an individual in five tournaments • Finished the season with a 79.88 stroke average • Her low finish was in the Briar's Creek Invitational where she shot +7 and finished tied for 36th (75-74-74–223) • Transferred from the University of Washington before the season.
ROSHNEE SHARMA (Sophomore, Charlotte, N.C.)
Played in the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational as an individual (73-74-82–229) • Chosen as the featued speaker for the 2018 UNC Children's Pinwheels & Promises Luncheon.
CHENI XU (Senior, Zhuhai, China)
Played in two tournaments as an individual.
COACH NOTES
HEAD COACH JAN MANN (9th year)
Completed her ninth year as head coach at Carolina • She took over the program in 2009 • The Tar Heels captured the seventh tournament title and fifth individual medalist of her tenure this season • Carolina has been selected for an NCAA regional in each of Mann's nine seasons, moving on to the NCAA Championship in four seasons • In her tenures as head coach at UNC, UVA and UNCW, Mann has led teams to the NCAA regionals 13 times, her teams have won 12 tournament titles and she has coached players to 10 individual medals.
ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH AIMEE NEFF (1st year)
Completed her first year as associate head coach at Carolina • She was an assistant coach at Vanderbilt for the 2016-17 season and an assistant coach at Michigan State, her alma mater, from 2013-16.
Players Mentioned
